Local companies announce hundreds of job layoffs

Two Monroe County employers announced about 200 employee-layoffs Monday because of economic pressures.

General Electric Appliances announced they will eliminate 160 jobs from its Bloomington production facility, while Smithville, a telecommunications company based in Ellettsville, eliminated 45 jobs.

GE cited a decline in consumer demand for their side-by-side refrigerators, which are made at the Bloomington plant, as the reason for their staff reduction, according to a press release from GE appliances.

Smithville Spokesman Michael Snyder said Smithville’s company-wide workforce reductions began Monday.

By Oct. 31, about 160 of the 492 production positions in the GE plant will be effected by layoffs or early retirement options, according to the release.

“We are the last manufacturer still producing side-by-side refrigerators in the U.S. for the mass market, which tells you how incredibly competitive the side-by-side product category is today,” Bloomington Plant Operations Manager Frank Scheffel said in the release. “The reduced manufacturing schedule we have been operating under the last few years is not sustainable. We had to make some hard decisions to keep the remaining jobs and create an environment that will allow us to compete.”

About 35 percent of the employees at GE will accept the early retirement option, with the rest eliminated by layoffs, according to the release.
Demand for the refrigerators has declined more than 30 percent since 2010, and the plant has been idle for 20 weeks a year with an annual loss of millions of dollars, according to the release.

“We have to change to compete,” Scheffel said in the release. “We are appreciative of the employees who have been with us through all the good years and, more recently, through some of the more challenging years. We will do our best to help the employees who are impacted by this action.”

Likewise, Smithville has seen industry changes in recent years.

Snyder said the layoffs are the result of declines in the use of landline telephones and industry uncertainty created by the Federal Communications Commission.

“Significant consumer market changes and expected changes in federal regulatory issues have led Smithville to realize that it must strategically change before market dynamics force uncontrolled change,” Smithville CEO Darby McCarty said in a press release from Smithville.

Jeb Conrad, president and CEO of the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce, said in the short term, it’s a challenge for the laid off workers, because the layoffs will have an effect on their disposable income, spending and the local economy.

“There are resources out there — probably the most effective is the state’s Work One program,” Conrad said.

Work One, a division of the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, helps match businesses with prospective employees.Conrad said, as a result of the layoff, potential employers will have access to some well-trained workers.

Conrad also said major shifts are typically seen when there is a complete close of a business.

“It’s always disappointing to see any employee or a percentage of employees be laid off; however, the changes in business models for these employers at the end of the day put them at the top position to make that choice,” Conrad said.

Dana Palazzo, project manager for the Bloomington Economic Development Corporation, said local companies have contacted BEDC about looking to hire laid-off employees.

“We have a strong economic base, and many local economic manufacturers are hiring often,” Palazzo said.

Palazzo said the local community cares about the laid-off workers, and as many local companies continue to improve, they will be able to hire more
employees.

“It is important for economic development organizations to continue to do what we do and keep the economy vibrant and help the local businesses grow and support that growth,” Palazzo said.

Follow reporter Matt Stefanski on Twitter @stefanskimatt.